A giant gumball machine filled with cupcakes? Oh lord, yes

We’ve seen gumball machines. We’ve seen the ones that give out terrible lead-paint drenched toys, tattoos and decoder rings. But finally there’s one that tops them all: A cupcake machine for your next party. Whoa.

CMP and all-around New York City favorite Baked By Melissa, makers of
those irresistible bite-sized cupcakes, took Fashion Week as an
opportunity to roll out a 6.5-foot tall cupcake pod machine. Drop in a
token, and one of 2,000 delicious, fresh cupcake will roll out, sealed
in a little plastic pod. You never know which of the inventive flavors
you’ll get, which is a genius way to keep from spending way too much
time deciding between peanut butter cup and red velvet. (Raising hand;
guilty as charged.)

Unlike the Sprinkles Cupcake ATM, this one is actually available for rent for your next party. Because hello? Want.

Rental starts at a mere $4200 including 1,000 assorted fresh cupcakes that fill half the machine, along with tokens, a recycling bin for the pods, employees on hand to help you out, plus an iPad an stand which presumably features info about the various flavors so you can keep an eye out for those coveted Chocolate Chip Pancake cupcakes.

No, it’s not cheap; welcome to New York City party planning. But the truth is, I’d far prefer it to pony rides. My kids might even agree. –Liz

Even without the cupcake pod machine, these cupcakes are irresistible. With a $20 minimum orders, Baked By Melissa cupcakes can be shipped nationwide, or delivered around Manhattan for a $10 fee. Check the website for more info and prepare to drool. OR you can email info@bakedbymelissa.com for all the details on rentals.

Christopher Boudewyns

BTW – for the cupcake art, you have to actually ASSEMBLE THE “ART” YOURSELF!! I found this out the hard way today when I went to pick up the cupcake art I purchased for my daughter’s birthday party. We designed a 225 cupcake piece, and when I picked it up, instead of getting a 15×15 square with the design, they gave me several smaller boxes and said “There you go.” To which I said, “excuse me?? I thought I was getting the “art” I designed, submitted and paid for, but I have to do all the work myself?” They said, “Well, yeah…”

UGH UGH UGH UGH!!!!!!!!!!!!! At $185 for 225 cupcakes, it’s not cheap, and I kinda figured I was paying for the work to assemble it besides the cupcakes themselves, which frankly are, meh… ok. Cute, but… meh.

When I asked about a display board, or something to put them on while assembling them, I was told, “Oh, we don’t supply anything like that… Just put them on any flat surface.” Well, that’s fine if I were planning to spend the afternoon assembling a cupcake piece I paid to be assembled to begin with, but I actually have other things to do in getting ready for a 3-year-old’s birthday party. I was told, “Gosh, I’ve put them together before, and gee, it’s kinda fun, and should really only take you 20 or 25 minutes…” Again, EXCUSE ME?? Why am I paying you for a product I have to assemble myself when it’s assumed by creating the online “cupcake art” that the final product would come as designed.

NEVER AGAIN! Never again will I spend money at BBM. We live next door to them, and we frequented the shop from time to time, but today will be the last purchase I make from this store.

The thing that kind of threw me for a loop was the “Oh, well…” attitude I was met with by 3 of the employees. When I said, “No, seriously, what am I supposed to put these on to present a birthday cake to my daughter? Seriously??” The girl at the counter just shrugged and rolled her eyes at me.